Run away
by Necrophobia
Summary: Sounds she no longer heard. She heard nothing but silence. Her blank eyes stared aimlessly into the black sky, her body motionless beneath him. It was too late. Time could not be taken back. The moment had passed.
1. Run

_**Max**_

Run. Get away from this place. The stench of sweat and blood still linger in the air while you're here.

Run away, that's right, I argued with myself. You're weak. You can't even fight off a mere human.

You can't do anything right. Just lie down here and die. If you go back to the others and they find out…

They won't believe you. No one would do that to you. They'll all laugh at you.

You're Maximum Ride, fearless leader of the flock. You can't live up to that name. You let _him_ do that to you and you did nothing. What am I going to do?

I was huddled in a ball under the shadow of a dark pine amidst a dense wood of some sort. It was eerily silent, which was ironic seeing as earlier when _he _was here, sounds suddenly seemed to be ten times louder than they used to be.

Get up, I told myself. But I stayed, huddled underneath the pine tree, afraid to come out of my stupor and face reality. Get _up_! This time, I got up, swaying on the spot for a while. I glanced down and inwardly groaned. My clothes were bloody and ripped. Not that that was much of a difference to how they usually were. It was just that I suddenly felt dirty, filthy and covered in some foreign, disgusting substance that I had to go wash off immediately.

I decided to fly back to the hotel the flock and I was staying in at the current moment in time and have a long, long shower. I slowly unfurled my wings and took off.

The cold night air blew across my face, but I felt nothing. I felt numb, like I had been put in the freezer for a couple of hours, and then taken out to be defrosted.

In fact, the only place I could really feel anything was in between my legs. A subtle soreness ached there, but I could handle it. I glided down and landed on the railing of the balcony of our room. I quietly snuck into the room and glanced over at the sleeping bodies on the couch. Gazzy and Iggy were sprawled in an awkward fashion across the couch, as if someone had flung their dead bodies there. Loud snores emitted from Gazzy and Iggy (especially Gazzy). I smiled slightly. My smile quickly faded away when I thought of what they would think of me if they knew.

I snuck into the bathroom, passing the bedroom where I presumed the rest of the flock were. I took off my dirt-encrusted clothes and chucked them on the floor. I was about to go into the shower when I caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror.

Angry red marks crawled around my back and front. Hmmm. Interesting. I turned on the shower and got in. Oh, crud! The water was cold. It was one of those showers where you had to wait for a while before it got warm.

Why couldn't anything go right for once in my life? Why did everything turn bad? I slowly slid down and sat on the shower floor, letting the water run down me.

As the water ran down my arms, a stinging sensation caused me to look down at them. Crescent shaped imprints ran down both my arms, some deep enough to draw blood, other too shallow to be noticeable. I wonder how that got there, I thought dryly. I found a bar of soap on the floor and rubbed in over my body, ignoring the smart when it got into open flesh. I just wanted to be clean. I felt so filthy, like no matter how much I scrubbed, I would still be covered in dirt and grime.

I wanted to tell someone about what had happened, but no one would understand. They'd just laugh at me. Especially Fang. After what I did to him, he'd probably laugh the hardest…

_

* * *

_

_Angel had (once again) displayed her utterly mind-blowing ability to convince a certain hotel owner to let us stay in a room for the night; free of charge!_

_Sometimes I just wanted to give her a huge bear hug, so tight that it shattered all her bones and I would gaze upon her twisted remains and laugh with the evil laugh I've been working on. At the moment, it went something like this: Mwahahaha! I really think I could improve on it though, it's a little too cliché, don't you think? Maybe something more authentic like this: Har-har-snort-bacon-hee-ho-ho-the-dark-lord-chuckles-the-silly-piggy-leg-of-ham-hoo-hoo-ahh-ha-ha._

_Sorry, I got off track. What was I talking about? Hey, did you know that I have a mild case of ADHD? Yeah, I know what you're thinking. You're thinking: Max, how could you possibly have ADHD when you obviously pay attention to absolutely positively everything there is to pay attention to? And then I would say: Well, I'm not sure, but apparently I've got some of the symptoms like impulsivity and/or hyperactivity and the inability to pay attention to what I'm doing or talking abou- Oooh, look! A squirrel! It just ran past me! It was sooo cute! It's gone now, like in a tree or something but I swear on the life of my secret fluffy toy bunny (that I keep in supreme secretness (not even a real word) because the flock would tease me if they ever found out) that I totally saw a squirrel running past on its itty-bitty legs…_

_Oops, I did it again! Hey, that's they title of a song where they all wear really tight clothing… Sorry. I refuse to get off topic again. Anyway, so as I was saying, Angel got us a room in some random hotel for free. Pretty sweet, huh? So we went inside and raided the little mini fridge that resides there. And when that was finished, we bombarded room service with order after order of the finest varieties of junk foods money (grins) could buy. All of the sugar made me do that hyperactive thing I do, and now I'm talking like a drunken person (giggles). After we all were overflowing to the brim with food, we all finally passed out on the couch and beds provided. I was the last one awake, so I snuck outside onto the balcony and started ogling at the moon. The moon caused me to think of cheese, and the cheese caused me to think of all the cheese and crackers we ate today, and the cheese and crackers caused me to think of food in general, and food in general caused me to-_

"_Hey,"_

_A familiar voice jerked me back from my thoughts and I randomly blurted out, "I didn't do it."_

"…" _Fang remained silent and stared at me incredulously for what seemed like forever and I stared back. Oooh, his eyes are soooo shiny and pretty and, and dark and full of weird emotions and-_

"_Do you mind if I hang with you for awhile?"_

"_Okey-doke." I said nonchalantly. Man, I thought to myself. I really need to lay off the sugar. We stared at the moon and stuff for a bit, and then I got bored. I turned to Fang and caught him staring at me. His cheeks reddened slightly. Awww, he's soooo cute! Damn you infernal sugar, tomorrow I will be sober and shall be able to cope with life once again._

"_Now what?" I said, cocking my head to one side like a Total does sometimes._

_Suddenly, for no reason whatsoever, Fang's lips crashed down on mine and I realised a few things._

_One: I was on a sugar high._

_Two: Fang was on a sugar high._

_Three: My pupils were dilating like there was no tomorrow._

_Four: Fang was kissing me._

_Five: I like cheese._

_Six: It feels…nice._

_The most important on that list are four and six, by the way. My brain finally comprehended what was happening and I pushed Fang off. I wiped my mouth with my sleeve childishly and took a step backwards._

"_Max-" Fang started to say, but I didn't hear the rest. The wind was whistling too loudly in my ears._

_I flew as fast as I could, my thoughts chasing each other around my head. I didn't pay attention to where I was going or when I would come back; all that mattered was getting away. I was afraid. Why was I afraid?_

_The moment, when Fang…_

_Let me restart._

_When Fang and I…_

_Um…_

_When he…_

_Arrrgh! Okay! When he and me smooched, kissed, snogged, pashed-whatever you want to call it, it felt…weird. Like in a good way, but._

_Perfect._

_Ecstasy._

_Mind-boggling_

_KA-BOOM! (Cue gigantic mushroom explosion)_

_It was _too _perfect to be true. I'm just so confused. One minute were together naked in a kiddie pool and the next (EXPLOSION)._

_I finally came to my senses and landed smack bang in a pine wood/ forest/ thing. A cool breeze swept across the trees, rustling the leaves gently and I shivered. A _crack_, like a twig breaking underfoot made me twist around and look behind me._

_A heavy arm draped around my neck and a clammy hand clamped my mouth shut. Another hand was shoved under my nose and I inhaled because my mouth was obviously in no position to do so. The stench of sweat and stale alcohol was pushed up my nose, as well as some powdery substance that tickled. As soon as I had inhaled, the arm let me go, and I was shoved to the ground. I coughed and spluttered looked up at the dark figure standing ofver me. I tried to get back up and fight him, but suddenly my extremities felt heavy, as if someone had super-glued a couple of anvils to my arms and legs and my head started feeling fuzzy and everything seemed to be moving._

"_You better be grateful." Growled a voice that sounded like he had swallowed a box of thumbtacks, "That was my last bit of dope I had on me. You just better be worth it"_

_The man leaned over me, his face almost touching mine, blowing breath that smelt like beer and stale sandwiches on me…_

_A man leaned over a pale girl, his jeans dangling by his ankles; the buckle dangling and hitting the ground with a muffled rhythmic jingle._

_Sounds she no longer heard. She heard nothing but silence._

_Her blank eyes stared aimlessly into the black sky, her body motionless beneath him._

_It was too late. Time could not be taken back. The moment had passed._

_He's inside you now. It's all over._

_A loud cry jolted her and she was again in her own body..._

_The man pulled up his jeans and dusted himself off. I looked up at him and snarled, "I'm going to tell the police, you know." I shakily stood up, still not completely sober. I'll tell them what you did to me, you filthy bastard!"_

_Instead of fear, like I'd hoped, a smirk crossed his face. "Really?" he said. "Do you really think that anyone would want to rape _you_? No one would! You're hideous! You're nothing! No one would want to have sex with you, you worthless piece of shit!"_

_And then he left._

_

* * *

_

My eyes started to prickle, but I angrily wiped my eyes with my arm. What would the flock say if they knew I was crying? That's right, I said to myself. Go and cry like a baby. You're weak. You can't cope. You're hopeless.

I got up, and turned off the shower. As soon as the water stopped flowing, cleansing me, I started to feel really filthy again. I wasn't sure why though. I dried myself with a towel and picked up my blood-encrusted clothes. My hands felt like a bazillion germs had started crawling off the clothes and up my arms. That was it. I had to get rid of them. I stood on the closed toilet seat and chucked the repulsive things out the small toilet window.

I stood on the toilet for a moment, before a wet, slimy trickle crawled down my leg. I climbed off the toilet and looked down at my leg. A deep crimson trail was dribbling down from my inner thigh.

Strange.

Wonder how that got there.

I grabbed one of those fluffy towels that you can only ever get at hotels and searched fleetingly for any clothes that might have magically materialised on the bathroom floor.

Crap.

There were no clothes in sight. I had to go get some from my bag in the room I shared with Angel.

I crossed my fingers and hoped she was asleep. I crept out of the bathroom and slowly slunk into the bedroom. I glanced at the sleeping form of Angel in her bed and sighed internally in relief.

I grabbed some clothes, not caring if they matched; just that they were clean. I didn't want to feel dirty again, being in stylish, filthy clothes I just wanted to feel clean again.

I climbed into the other single bed and cried to sleep, just like those cry babies I hate, and was slowly becoming.

* * *

**Dear reader,**

**This is more or less my first fanfiction that I have written.**

**If you have the time, please direct your mouse into the area of the review button located at the bottom of this page and click.**

**I would like to know if my story is too random or has too many D 'n' M's in it or if it sucked completely and utterly times infinity. **

**This will probably turn out to be a two-shot, but I can't be certain. It depends if anyone is interested in this. Have a suitable day/night...**

**Regards,**

**Necrophobia :)**


	2. Away

_**Fang**_

There's something about Maximum Ride.

I don't know what, but when I figure it out.

She has really violent mood swings…

Cue caption of that cricket chirping you hear on movies.

For instance, just about three and a half minutes ago there she had stood, right next to me on the balcony.

She was in an airy-fairy mood and kept staring at the sky; a giddy kind of expression clouding her face (which I thought was kind of cute).

I couldn't look away from her. It was like reading an extremely interesting story and you couldn't look anywhere else; you HAD to keep reading it, consuming it like air; you _needed _it.

She turned to me, her pale face softly illuminated by the moonlight. Her eyes widened as she caught me looking at her.

I blushed.

Which is something, let me tell you, I am not in the habit of doing.

Her dark, chocolate brown eyes were fixed on me and she cocked her head sideways in a too-cute-it-should-be-illegal kind of way.

There was this chant going on in my head. It went something like this: Kiss her. Kiss her. Kiss her.

"Now what?" she asked.

And then I did the most stupid, brainless, dim-witted thing I could have done.

I kissed her.

And it felt like heaven on a stick (which was coincidentally a type of ice-cream).

Sheer bliss.

Submerged in oblivion.

I never wanted it to end.

But it did.

And suddenly, it came to an abrupt end.

Max pushed me back, wiping her mouth on her sleeve; her eyes wide with horror, regret, curiosity?

"Max-" I started to say, but Max had already thrown herself off the balcony and into the night.

"I love you." I finished under my breath.

I sighed and kicked a potted plant half-heartedly with the toe of my sneaker.

It slid through the balcony rails and into someone else's balcony, colliding with another fake plant.

_Crap. _I swore internally and hurried inside, closing the sliding glass door and pulling the curtains over it before anyone started snooping at the clang of ceramic that had resounded outside.

This wasn't the first time I had kissed her, of course.

But it always felt the same. Always a distant memory of euphoria and then WHAM!

A fresh, sweet tasting wake up call that instantly made the world seem dull and colorless compared to what it looked like now.

Why did she always run away when I tried to get close to her?

Maybe she just didn't like me in _that _way.

But heck. I like _her. _Maybe even _loved _her_. _But I guess she doesn't feel the same.

I slumped past Ig and Gazzy, snoring like the tyrants they were on the couch and past the bedroom Max and Angel were sharing. I ended up at the bedroom nearest the bathroom.

For some reason, I was sharing a double bed with Nudge. Apparently, I couldn't be trusted to share a bed with Max.

Privately I agreed.

Pulling back the duvet covers on the bed, not bothering to change.

I threw myself into the covers and made a mental note to have a shower in the morning.

***

The sound of running water woke me from my dream.

And it was a darn good one too, in case you were wondering (Max was in it.)

I groaned into the pillow; was it morning already?

I glanced out the window and darkness greeted me. It was still night.

Who in blazing's name would have a blazing shower in the middle of the blazing night and wake me up from my blazing dream?

Whoever was in there was wasting water. And water these days is hard to come by.

After a couple of years, the water was finally turned off.

A few moments later, muffled footsteps crept past my room and entered the one next to mine.

It must be Max. She had finally returned. A rustling sound of shifting material emitted from the wall and then there was silence.

I strained my ears, listening for the tiniest noise to see what Max was up to.

Then a small, almost inaudible sound traveled from that bedroom, a sound so terrible and unusual, I could hardly believe my ears.

A soft, delicate sobbing passed through the thin wall that divided Max and me, wrenching my heart into my mouth.

I swallowed it back into my chest.

Max? _The _Maximum Ride was … _crying? Actually _crying.

_Why?_ Was the first question that came to my mind.

I thought back, to everything that had happened and back tracked to the moment I had kissed her and she had ran away.

Did she really hate kissing me?

Was she so disgusted by me that kissing me was a horrific experience for her?

Well, she had after all ran away from me on numerous occasions when I had kissed her.

I just didn't know it was that horrible for her.

That was it. I would never kiss her again, no matter how much I might want to.

If it made her feel this awful, I would stop.

Because I love her and it breaks my heart, knowing that I made her cry.

***

The next morning, I woke up and groggily walked into the living room, sitting on the couch where Iggy and Gazzy had slept the night before.

"Well someone's finally up."

I looked up to see Iggy grin at my general direction, then resume mixing up some awful smelling substance in the hotel saucepans with Gazzy. Max and Nudge were sitting on the big armchair together and Angel was lying stomach down on the carpet, watching cartoon animals bounce across the television screen.

Nudge was jabbering away about something (probably fashion) to Max, but I noticed that Max was leaning her body away from Nudge, as if she smelt bad or something.

Weird.

As soon as Angel noticed me, she got up off the floor and walked out onto the balcony.

_**Follow me. **_

Her voice echoed in my head and I grudgingly followed her.

When I got out there, she slid the door closed.

"So," I said, putting my hands into my pockets, "What's up?"

"Have you noticed anything strange about Max?" Angel asked with those big blue eyes of hers.

"Erm, no." I said untruthfully, pushing the incident on the balcony with Max from my mind.

"Well," Angel said slowly, looking at me carefully, "Last night she came to bed late and woke me up."

"Uh-huh." I hoped Angel hadn't heard her thoughts; they were obviously about how terrible a kisser I was.

"She wasn't thinking that." Angel confirmed, reading my mind, "But her thoughts were very unclear."

I nodded, but still not entirely convinced that I was blameless. "So, what _was _she thinking about."

"Ah, the thing is," said Angel, "I couldn't really get a clear thought pattern from her. All I could get was the basic emotion and a little of her thoughts. She was…sad. Really sad and she kept thinking about dirt."

"Dirt?" I said incredulously. Seriously? Why on earth would she be thinking about something as random as _dirt_?

"I'm not sure." Angel answered my thoughts for me.

Maybe, kissing me had mad her feel dirty. Realization dawned on me. _I _had made Max cry. _I _had made Max feel like dirt.

A piercing scream jerked us away from our thoughts. We rushed into the kitchen to find Max screaming at Iggy and Gazzy.

Disgusting bubbly greenish-brown gunk was strewn across the walls and floor, making it look like someone had thrown up everywhere.

A huge slither was sliding down Max's face.

Uh-oh.

"Why can't you just keep this place clean?" she shrieked at their stunned faces. "What makes it okay for you to go blowing up every freaking thing in sight? It's all over me now! It's _disgusting_!"

A long, awkward silence followed Max's outburst.

"S-sorry, Max," stuttered Gazzy, still in shock from Max's outburst. "We-we didn't mean to."

"Yeah," Iggy mumbled quietly, "It was just a joke. We won't do it again if it makes you feel that way."

Nudge had noticed me come into the room, jerked her head in Max's direction and gave me a questioning look as if to ask _what the hell is wrong with Max?_

I just shrugged at her and looked at Angel.

Angel had this weird constipated look on her face, as if she was trying hard to do something.

Max's eyes watered with tears of unprovoked fury, her body shaking with left over rage.

She turned her head from Gazzy and Ig, and looked at me.

The anger disappeared from her face, fear replacing it.

She looked so lost and lonely, her eyes wide, staring straight at me.

I could almost see it.

I could see her deteriorating.

Piece by piece, she was drowning, falling into a mad depression.

Before my very eyes, she was unraveling.

And it was all my fault.

* * *

**Dear reader,**

**First of all, I would like to thank everyone who gave me a review. **

**It just made my puny heart overflow with joy. **

**Second of all, because of a request on one of the reviews (grins at Woodbyne) I will make this story longer than a two shot, but if people start to get bored and uninterested, story will go bye bye.**

**For some reason, I cave to peer pressure a lot. Weird.**

**Once again, please review when you feel up to it. **

**I would like to know how much crap you thought I had shoved into this chapter.**

**If this chapter seems too short, or unfulfiilling to you, please notify me of this defect. Enjoy the rest of spring/fall/autumn.**

**In marriage (NOT),**

**Necrophobia :)**


	3. Forever

_**Max**_

The next morning, I woke up feeling empty.

My stomach felt flat; completely hollow- just as I was.

Void. Empty. No longer filled up with _him._

I went to the bathroom and relieved my bladder of its burden.

I walked to the sink and washed my hands and splashed cold water over my face to wake me up.

As I raised my head, I caught a glimpse of my reflection in the mirror.

A girl stood in front of me.

Her deep brown eyes were full of nothing; vacant and searching for happiness.

She was quite the sight, slightly red eyes, lanky blonde hair; she looked horrible.

Who would ever want _her?_

_Nobody wants you, you're hideous!_

_Disgusting._

_No one would want to have sex with you, you worthless piece of shit!_

The words of the man I…met last night rang loud and clear in my head.

He was right.

I _was _nothing.

Less than nothing.

Worthless.

No one wants me.

Who would want me now?

***

Time passed. I'm not sure how much.

I steered myself into the living room, throwing myself into an armchair.

"Good morning!" Nudge said brightly from where Iggy and Gazzy were suspiciously hunched over a saucepan.

"Morning." I answered impassively. I wasn't really in the mood for a chat with Nudge. She could go on about anything really for ages and ages.

Angel was lying on the floor, watching some kid's cartoon. She glanced up from it for a moment, looking at me with an unnecessary concerned look on her face.

I just looked at her, emotions completely erased off my face. I built an imaginary brick wall in my mind; dividing Angel's mind from invading my own.

I didn't want her to know.

I didn't want anyone to know.

What would they think if they found out?

I was so ashamed.

"Shove over," Nudge's increasingly obnoxious voice materialized beside me.

Reluctantly, I moved to the edge of the armchair. Nudge squeezed next to me and started chatting about B.T.T.N.T.W.I (boring things that Nudge thought were interesting).

I nodded at her every so often, just to keep up appearances.

I have, after all, a reputation to uphold.

I slowly noticed that I was leaning away from Nudge.

I wondered why. I tried to lean closer to her, but her body repelled me. I really didn't want to be touched at the moment.

"Well someone's finally up." Iggy's voice notified me that Fang was now in the land of the living.

Fang ignored him and just stood still on the spot.

I went back to my conversation with Nudge, pretending to be interested in how "tucked in shirts were tacky" and "holes in jeans shouldn't be tolerated".

Angel unexpectedly got up off the floor and walked onto the balcony, Fang following closely behind.

I wonder what's going on with them.

And just like that, everything was going back to how it usually was before…yesterday.

Nudge was talking her (and my) brains out.

Izzy and Gazzy were doing who knows what.

Angel was sweet-talking to someone.

And Fang was acting mysteriously, as usual.

I wondered if everything would just go uphill from here.

I hoped.

I wished.

It was all going smoothly, until the saucepan Iggy and Gazzy were huddled over spontaneously combusted all over the walls, floor and…me.

Iggy and Gazzy had huge grins plastered on their faces, like they were proud or something.

"Why did you do _that _for?" I asked sharply.

"Oh come on Max," said Iggy mischievously, ruffling his hair with a hand.

Iggy and Gazzy grinned at each other; sure they had got me now (not bloody likely).

The normal Max would have just told them to clean the mess up or given up on them.

But I couldn't do that.

There was a slimy, _revolting _glob of something _on my face._

Contaminating, infecting me with dirt.

I don't like feeling _dirty. _

Maybe I did before…But I don't anymore.

The feeling is creeping all over me.

It's overwhelming me.

I'm sinking.

And it was _their _fault.

"Don't _come on_ _Max_ me!" I growled.

Their grins slowly slid off their faces.

_All their fault._

Anger flashed through my mind, white hot spots dancing in front of my eyes.

"Why can't you just keep this place clean?" I screamed at them. "What makes it okay for you to go blowing up every freaking thing in sight? It's all over me now! It's _disgusting_!"

Silence followed my angry outbreak.

I noticed that Angel and Fang had returned from their trek to the Balcony of the Damned.

Everyone stared at me in disbelief.

"S-sorry, Max," stammered Gazzy. "We-we didn't mean to."

"Yeah," Iggy muttered. "It was just a joke. We won't do it again if it makes you feel that way."

I just looked at them, my vision blurry with hot tears that I furiously blinked back.

I slowly turned my head and looked at Fang.

His face was a contorted mixture of incredulity, fear, despair.

Why did I shout at Iggy and Gazzy like that?

They were always making some kind of bomb; it was their twisted idea of a hobby.

Why had I overreacted?

Sorrow had overwhelmed me for a moment and I had lost control.

I was losing it.

What was happening to me?

* * *

**Dear reader,**

**Hopefully this chapter isn't too short. Every chapter will be alternating on Fang and Max's point of view. **

**My love goes out to everyone who reviewed (I WUV you!!!). Please click the box thing at the bottom of the page and review when you are ready. Please tell me things I need to improve on, like the over hyperactive thoughts or the dire shortness of this chapter. **

**Hopefully I will write a longer chapter next time, but no promises because my attention seems to wander all the ti-Look! It's a leaf! And it fell off a tree! Well fancy that!**

**Anyway, I will try to update as soon as possible, but don't hold your breath (passes out from lack of oxygen). **

**Be safe and don't do what I do and fall unsuspectingly into any manholes.**

**Yours truly,**

**Necrophobia :)**


	4. And

**_Fang_**

And it just got worse.

It was about two weeks after the "little hotel incident" and we had all decided to leave it behind us and were now all trying to give Max some space.

Nudge had convinced everyone to go window-shopping, so now we were all walking past shop windows with bored looks on our faces.

We had gotten some ice cream at the local ice cream store, so almost everyone had sticky fingers covered in melted ice cream.

Everyone was slurping theirs hungrily, but Max was just eyeing hers up and down, as if it was poison.

She caught me looking and I quickly averted my gaze.

But in the corner of my eye, I saw her dump the offending ice cream into a bin.

She was getting more and more unpredictable every day.

We stopped at a window with lots of giant televisions towering above us.

Iggy and the Gasman were fighting over the remains of Iggy's ice cream and didn't notice that we had stopped.

"Guys, wait!" squealed Nudge, pointing to a television with painfully thin women strutting around a catwalk.

"Oooh, look!" Nudge cooed admiringly at the television. "Can I have that outfit for my birthday? I'll never ask for anything else again!"

Insert "rub temples" here.

While everyone groaned at Nudge's fascination with fashion, I couldn't help noticing Max looking at the screen with a subtle enthrallment; a watered down version of Nudge's obsession.

Since when has Max like fashion?

The beanpole models were replaced by a voice over, promising to return after the break.

We all started to leave, but a Newsbreak appeared on the screen.

You never know when something interesting in the world might happen.

I listened carefully, a woman with fake blonde hair talking through huge lipstick smothered smile plastered on her plastic like face.

Something about the government and pollution popped up, the screen displaying numerous pictures of cute animals dying in places like polluted water, human waste and government tennis clubs.

"Yesterday evening," the news reporter announced, "A man was charged for the statutory rape of a thirteen-year-old girl.

The victim's parents found her lying naked in a wood near their estate, mentally and physically scared.

The method of this man's misconducts is to first sedate the victim with a drug, later identified as powdered heroin.

This renders the victim into a state of euphoria, leaving them helpless to whatever the felon has in store.

The girl has identified the man as early twenties, brown hair, white complexion and a thin frame.

This man is still at large. If you know anything about this or other rapes, please contact the following number."

A big flashy number appeared on the screen.

"This man's actions were disgraceful and his victim will endure a lifelong legacy of psychological and physical trauma." The news reporter stated proudly; she had said so many big words in a single sentence.

Poor kid, I thought. Lifelong legacy of trauma and all that.

Wonder what it'd be like, to be forced to do something you didn't want to do.

I mean, the flock and I were locked up in cages for half our lives, so we _know _what it's like to be forced to do something.

But what happens if that something is sex?

I shuddered internally and kept walking.

"Max?" Nudge's voice stopped me in mid stride and I turned around. "Come on, Max. Let's go."

Max was standing, stock still staring at the television screen that we had been watching.

Her fists were clenched so tightly that her knuckles had turned white.

"Max," I walked up to her and put a hand on her shoulder. "Are you okay?"

She barely nodded and shrugged my hand off.

She started walking, not looking back.

The flock and I exchanged glances.

What was that all about?

* * *

**Dear reader,**

**Because I have been informed that I should write longer chapters, I will, from now on, if the chapter is seriously short, add two chapters together. **

**Just don't be expecting it 31 (24/7). Anyway, because of this selfless act of gallantry I have just performed, I now command you to review this chapter like crazy!!!**

**MWAHAHAHAHA!!!**

**Reasonably sincerely,**

**Necrophobia :)**

* * *

**_Max_**

_At night, when I climbed into bed, the man was there with me. _

_He crawled into my head, weaving his way through my exhausted mind making me recall every moment I had been with him._

_He wouldn't let me forget he owned me, he owned my body; he owned who I was._

_When I woke in the morning he was there, another day he was inevitably part of._

_When I ate breakfast he told me I was fat and shouldn't have that second helping._

_When I got dressed, he stared back at me from the mirror and told me I would never be pretty; I would remain hideous for the rest of my life._

_When I opened my mouth to speak to the flock, he whispered in my ear, telling me no one believed what I was saying, nobody cared or wanted to hear it._

_When I was lying in bed, or the ground or wherever at night, he told me I would never be a success at anything. _

_There was nothing special about me. _

_The dreams I had to become the savior of the world were just that- dreams._

_I wasn't special, and I wasn't different from anyone else in this world._

_Sometimes he even told me I would be better off dead._

_And sometimes I believed him._

***

We were walking past endless rows of shops. Nudge had wanted to go window-shopping so now we where stuck gazing pointlessly into the translucent glass.

I caught Fang looking at me, but as soon as he noticed he looked away.

_He hates you._

_He's sick and tired of you._

_When he tried to get close, what did you do?_

_What did you do?_

_You ran away._

_And you will run away from your problems forever. _

_Run away forever. _

_Never stopping._

_And if he knew, he would ridicule you._

_He doesn't want you anymore._

_You're pathetic._

We had all gotten an ice cream each, but as I licked mine, the man's voice drifted in and out of my head, whispering that I shouldn't eat it; I was too fat, I couldn't afford to eat it.

That was it.

I chucked the stupid, calorie-packed ice cream into a bin.

"Guys, wait!" shrieked Nudge.

I turned around to see her pointing to a television in a technology shop.

I didn't want to stay here.

I just wanted to go.

"Oooh, look!" Nudge said in a approving tone. "Can I have that outfit for my birthday? I'll never ask for anything else again!"

I finally looked at what was on the television screen.

What I saw both amazed and terrified me.

Women were swaggering down a catwalk, clad in clothes that seemed to cover as little as possible.

The clothes disgusted me; they were slutty.

But something else caught my attention.

They women on the screen were so…thin.

They were in control of their bodies.

_I _wanted that kind of control.

I had been trying to do that ever since I had left the hotel, but I got too hungry.

I had tried to get _him _out of my system.

It felt _good._

_Powerful. _

_I need control._

A voice told us that the show would return after the break.

I glanced into the reflective empty space next to the television in the shop window.

_A stranger stared back at me, trapped on the other side. Her brown eyes, hollow and defeated, wandered despairingly to the ground and failed to meet mine._

_Then, slowly, she turned away. She didn't stop to look back._

Slightly disappointed, the flock and I headed off.

Fang stayed behind.

What was he up to now?

The television now had a Newsbreak dancing over the screen.

It was kind of boring to be honest, but if Fang wanted to watch it, I'd wait.

The flock and I were getting bored.

Fang was just staring intently at the screen, absorbing in every irrelevant detail of cute animals and pollution.

"-statutory rape of a thirteen-year-old girl."

Now _that _caught my attention.

I glanced at the flock; they were still consumed by boredom and were making over-exaggerated mock faces of how Fang looked like watching the television.

I sighed mentally, and turned back to the screen.

"-method of this man's misconducts is to first sedate the victim with a drug, later identified as powdered heroin.

This renders the victim into a state of euphoria, leaving them helpless to whatever the felon has in store.

The girl has identified the man as early twenties, brown hair, white complexion and a thin frame.

This man is still at large. If you know anything about this or other rapes, please contact the following number."

My brain froze.

My heart stopped beating.

My lungs refused to work.

That sounded familiar; _too familiar._

Hadn't that man shoved something up my nose?

Hadn't I gone into a state of-something starting with E?

And, if I recall correctly, didn't he look like the description the news reporter had depicted?

"This man's actions were disgraceful and his victim will endure a lifelong legacy of psychological and physical trauma."

The words echoed in my head.

Is that what was to become of _me?_

I was too weak to defy a mere homo-sapien drug.

I _let _him do those things to me.

How could I have done this?

"Max?" Nudge's voice plunged into my head, dragging me back to the real world. "Come on, Max. Let's go."

I noticed that I hadn't moved; I was still staring at the television that had marred my consciousness.

I unclenched my hands, not certain how they had scrunched up in the first place.

"Max," A deep, soothing voice slid past my ears. A soft, warm hand placed itself on my shoulder. "Are you okay?"

I tilted my head in reply and shrugged Fang's hand off.

For some reason, I hadn't wanted to be touched lately.

I started walking away from the stupid News broadcast, ignoring the looks the flock exchanged with each other.

***

I was lying on frozen ground, pretending to be asleep.

_This was the forest; the very forest where he had…_

_And now I was staying here with the flock._

The flock snored away beside me, as if nothing was wrong, as if this wasn't the place where part of me had shriveled up and died.

I thought I was doing pretty darn well to convince everyone that I was asleep so far.

Even if _they_ were asleep.

It still counts.

My hands touched each other slightly, and I cringed inwardly.

They were red raw from washing them too frequently.

But it kept them clean.

You never know what kind of harmful bacteria can waltz up to you and declare a life long obsession with your hands.

Lately, I had been wishing for a lot of things.

It's very unlikely that I'd get any of them, but hey, a girl can wish.

I wish that I hadn't hurt Fang when he tried to get close to me, as I had countless other times.

I wish that I had been stronger; that I had at least tried to get away from _him_; tried to just utter _no_ from my cold, frozen lips that night.

I wish I could provide the flock with a better life; look after them; be a better mother to them, a mother that they deserve.

I wish I were tenacious and brave and strong-willed.

I wish I could face my fears.

And I wish, want, hope that I could learn to return the gaze of the girl in the mirror and confront the truth of what that man had really done to me.

To me.

Not some other girl.

Not the girl I had watched from afar.

Not the girl in the mirror.

Me.

* * *

**Dear reader,**

**It has come to my attention that we are now up to the fourth chapter of this story, and I have yet to write a disclaimer.**

** Please excuse this, as my mind has been on other matters (meaning I was too lazy). I will now enter a disclaimer below.**

**_Disclaimer:_****_ This story does not, in any way, profit from the original works of James Patterson. All creative rights to the characters belong to that author._**

**That disclaimer just counted for the entire story, so HA.**

**PLEASE click on the button below that has the words stated "Review this Story/Chapter"**

**Cheers,**

**Necrophobia :)**


	5. Accept

**_Fang_**

It was nighttime, and we were all starting to nod off.

Everyone except me anyway.

I was keeping watch.

And I was damned good at it too.

I sat on the edge of the sleeping flock, the cold, hard dirt floor beneath me.

The flock looked so peaceful asleep, as if all the bad things that had happened to them had been erased.

My gaze averted to Max.

Although she appeared to be sleeping, her body was tense as if expecting an attack.

Her collarbones jutted out of her neck, like jagged glass concealed carelessly beneath a thin sheet of silk.

She had lost a lot of weight in the past week or so.

Her skin looked too pale, too delicate.

Her bones seemed like they were a small movement away from breaking through her skin, piercing the thin white membrane that frailly covered her body.

For some reason, her hands were rubbed red raw and looked sore and painful.

What was _with _her lately?

I just sat there for a while, watching her feign sleep; ultimately falling into a deep slumber.

Her chest moved evenly, in short, shallow breaths like she was gulping for air; there was not enough.

Eventually, I too fell into an uneasy sleep.

***

"Fang,"

A small, soft voice nudged me awake.

"Mmm," I mumbled and turned over. "Go away."

"Fang!"

The voice turned more urgent.

I got up and rubbed my eyes with the back of my hand.

"What?"

Max's face warped with fear, "There's someone here."

"What do you mean?" I was awake now.

Who could scare Max that badly?

An eraser maybe.

"A-a human."

So it was just a human, big deal.

"Oh, okay." I rolled onto my side and closed my eyes.

"Fang!"

Her cold, bony hand shook my shoulder hard, digging into my flesh.

"Okay, okay!" I got up and looked at her.

"So what? It's just a human. If it comes, we can defend ourselves from one little human."

"Well," Max paused, obviously thinking desperately for some excuse, "It's so that, um it's so that the human doesn't find out about us." She said feebly.

"Right." I said, not convinced.

"Please." Max said pleadingly.

Her brown eyes opened wide with fear, tears building up slowly in them.

Since when had Max been afraid of puny little humans?

A small, barely audible _crack_ made Max and me turn to the dense thicket behind us.

Max's eyes got even wider and her breathing ragged.

"_Fang,_" she whispered fearfully, "Can we go now?"

"Why?"

"B-because," she said pitifully.

"Why, Max?" I asked, staring at her intently, "Why is it, that after all the erasers and _human _white coats you have fought without mercy, why is it that you are scared by one _single _stupid little human?"

The tears in Max's eyes started to spill onto her face.

The moonlight shone eerily on Max's pale face, making her even paler and making the shadows under her eyes more prominent.

Her sunken eyes gazed at me, not caring anymore.

She looked haunted.

A short silence passed between us until heavy footsteps come into earshot and a shadow hung over us like an eclipse.

"Well, well, well." A raspy voice said behind us.

We turned and a young, thin man loomed down on us.

I stood up.

Even though I was pretty tall for my age, the guy still had a couple of inches on me.

So _this _was the human that Max had been scared of?

There wasn't anything special about him.

Brown, lanky hair, pale and too skinny to be of a real threat.

But there was this glint in his eyes.

Like he'd experienced things that others hadn't.

Like he'd seen things that should never be seen.

Like he was haunted.

It was the same look that I saw in Max's eyes.

"Who the hell are you?" I asked.

"I don't know." A trace of fear flickered onto his face, but it was quickly replaced by a sneer.

"So," he said, looking at Max. "We meet again."

Since when had Max met this guy?

And since when, I thought, glancing over at Max, had she been so afraid by a _human._

He took a step towards Max and she cowered from his bony, looming figure.

I took a step towards him and a wave of alcohol repelled me, but I stood my ground.

"What are you doing?" I snarled into his face. "Why is she so afraid of you?"

"She hasn't told you?" he laughed.

"Hasn't told me what?" I looked at Max.

Her gaze dropped and stared fixatedly at the ground like all the secrets in the world were written right there in the dirt.

"Well, I expected that," he continued, "After all, who would _believe you?"_

"Believe what?" I asked and guess what?

Max started to cry.

Again.

Silent tears slid down her face.

What on earth could he have done to make her like this?

"Did he say something offensive?" I speculated.

She said nothing.

"Did he make you feel unsafe?"

Random ideas spilled from my mouth.

"Did he hurt one of the flock?"

That would probably of made her mad, but would it have made her like _this?_

"Did he hurt _you?"_

Her face paled, and I knew that I was on the right track.

"Did he hit you?"

She shook her head.

"No, he didn't hit me."

Hmmm.

Dead end.

Suddenly the look on her face reminded me of the one I'd seen, earlier today when she had watched the News story on the television.

"Did he _touch _you?"

She didn't answer.

And then it hit me.

What had happened to the girl on the News had happened to her.

"Did he _rape _you?"

**_

* * *

_**

**_Max_**

_Voices. _

_I heard voices._

I woke up to the sound of soft mumblings, muffled by distance.

I sat up and squinted into the dim, moonlight.

A lone figure lurked in the darkness, eerily distorted in the gloomy shadows.

I got up and slowly walked away from the sleeping flock, travelling further and further into the overgrowth.

I stooped under a particularly low branch and stopped in a small clearing.

This was the very clearing where my life had ended and I had started to welcome death as if he was an old friend.

A dark shadow loomed over me and I turned around.

"Hello," said a familiar voice, sending shivers down my spine. "Couldn't get enough of me, could you?"

My whole body froze and my mind started whirring at three hundred times its natural potential.

"W-what do you want?" I stuttered.

"You," he snarled, and took a step towards me.

I let out a pathetic squeak of fear and turned on my heel and ran.

I heard him cackle as he started to follow me.

_Quick. _

_Get away from him._

_You can never get away from him._

_You have to learn to accept what he did._

_You can't run away forever._

_You can't hide what happened._

_You have to learn to live with it._

_Otherwise your life won't be worth living._

My thoughts swirled around each other, contradicting themselves.

I raced back to the sleeping flock fell down next to Fang.

My breath came in small gasps and I finally said, "Fang,"

"Mmm," Fang uttered and turned away from me, "Go away."

He was going to go back to sleep!

But he _had _to get out of here!

If he found out…

"Fang!"

He slowly sat up and rubbed sleep out of his eyes.

"What?"

How was I going to explain this without giving my secret away?

"There's someone here."

"What do you mean?"

I gulped.

"A-a human."

"Oh, okay." Fang said dismissively and rolled over.

"Fang!"

I shook his shoulder violently.

"Okay, okay!"

Fan got up and looked at me.

"So what? It's just a human. If it comes, we can defend ourselves from one little human." He said.

If only he knew what that _one little human _was capable of.

Maybe then he wouldn't be so reluctant.

"Well," I paused, racking my brains for an excuse, "It's so that, um it's so that the human doesn't find out about us."

"Right." Fang raised an eyebrow, obviously not persuaded.

"Please." I whined.

What was I going to do if Fang didn't come?

He would find out and tell the others.

Why couldn't everything just _work?_

Why couldn't Fang just come and the flock and I could just get out of here, and away from _him._

_Crack! _

Fang and I swirled around and stared at the forest behind us.

Oh no.

_He _was coming.

Coming for _me_.

"_Fang,_" I whispered, "Can we go now?"

"Why?"

"B-because," I supplied lamely.

There wasn't much time left, but Fang just went on and on.

"Why, Max?" He asked, staring at me, "Why is it, that after all the erasers and _human _white coats you have fought without mercy, why is it that you are scared by one _single _stupid little human?"

Warm, wet moisture dripped down my cheeks and I looked at Fang wearily.

I was tired.

So tired.

Tired of lying, tired of pretending to be something I wasn't.

I wanted to be free.

"Well, well, well." A familiar voice said behind us.

We turned and there _he_ was.

In front of me and Fang.

_Fang!_

What would he think when he found out?

Fang stood up.

"Who the hell are you?" Fang asked.

"I don't know." An emotion (fear?) flashed onto his face, but it was quickly replaced by a sneer.

"So," he said, looking at me. "We meet again."

I gulped, frozen to the ground.

He took a step towards me, the familiar stench of stale alcohol and diluted drugs surrounding me; suffocating me like a really heavy lunchbox was sitting on my chest, crushing my lungs.

He smirked and he knew.

He knew that I was recalling what he did.

He knew that I was watching it playing over and over in my head.

It played scenes at random – sometimes with the sound of his voice, but mostly with a kinder, deceitful silence that somehow made it more bearable.

Standing on the outside, as if watching yourself from afar, you saw things – terrible things.

Watching someone who looked like you, moved like you, spoke like you – but who wasn't you – doing _those _things.

Those awful, disgusting things.

You wouldn't do _those _things?

You wouldn't let him – you'd stop him, wouldn't you?

And then the screen would go blank, leaving you with that familiar sick feeling in the pit of your stomach.

Fang took a step towards him and snarled, "What are you doing? Why is she so afraid of you?"

He looked at me with those eyes, the eyes that had haunted me since _that _day.

"She hasn't told you?" he cackled.

"Hasn't told me what?" Fang looked at me, with a questioning expression carved onto his face.

I averted my gaze to the floor and stared intently into the dirt.

"Well, I expected that," he continued, "After all, who would _believe you?"_

"Believe what?" Fang asked and I started to cry.

Silent tears slid down my face.

I haven't cried this much in the span of a few weeks since, well _never._

"Did he say something offensive?" Fang speculated.

I remained silent and continued to stare at the ground, my tears mangling with the dirt.

"Did he make you feel unsafe?"

How long was he going to guess?

"Did he hurt one of the flock?"

Crap. He just didn't give up, did he? Didn't he get it that no words could explain how I felt?

Did he honestly think I was going to tell him about everything?

"Did he hurt _you?"_

"Did he hit you?"

I shook my head. "No, he didn't hit me."

How long was this going to go on for?

It would just never end, would it?

"Did he _touch _you?"

I didn't answer him. _Touch?_ Like the touch of handholding? Or tucking my hair behind my ears? _Touch _didn't go far enough to explain it.

The way his fingertips dug into my breasts; the way his strong arms held me down; the way his voice echoed in my ear, the voice of some evil dictator – _Do what I tell you to do … Don't speak … Just shut up and do it … You'll like it … I promise you … Just let me touch you like this …Why aren't you feeling something? … What's wrong with you? Other girls like this – why don't you?_

"Did he _rape _you?"

* * *

**Dear reader,**

**I apologize profusely for not updating in a long time. **

**When an author of a favorite story of mine does not update, I begin to speculate _why_ hasn't it been updated?**

**Is it because the author has a life?**

**Or is the author _dead?_**

**I then begin to think of all the ways the author could have died.**

**_Cancer._**

_**Heart attack.**_

**_Car accident._**

**_Suicide._**

**_Murder._**

**Well, anyway please review and have a Scary Halloween (I think, it's not Halloween where I am).**

**With lots and lots of wuv (NOT),**

**Necrophobia :)**

**P.S**

**If you DO review, I have a few questions:**

******1. ****What do you think will happen next?**

**********2. ****Are there any males reading this? If so, is Fang's point of view realistic enough or too…unprofessional? **

**************3. ****Any requests?**

**You don't have to answer these questions if you don't want to, but please review and tell me all about what a terrible job I'm doing.**


	6. Everything

**_Max_**

BOOM! Detonation. Silence. Shock. Disbelief.

He knew! He knew what had happened!

I saw a flash and Fang was on top of _him, _in the way _he _had been on _me, _with complete and utter power over the other. At first, I thought Fang would definitely win, but they seemed evenly matched somehow; Fang running on anger and DNA enhancement while _he _running on drugs and alcohol and psycho…ness.

I watched, horrified as Fang threw punch after punch at the man, if you could call him a _man, _anyway.

"What's going on?"

A small voice trailed from behind me and a slowly, but surely sleepy flock stirred amidst the bloody battle.

"Fang!"

The flock's voices combined so their shout sounded like one, big _bang._

"Max, what's going on?"

Angel had come up to me. Oh crap. "Why is Fang fighting that human?"

"Because," Fang snarled, bloodlust in his eyes, "He _raped _Max!"

In a split second, many things happened.

The flock gasped and realization dawned on them. How could Fang _tell _them? Tell them of the horrible thing I had done, or rather _let _him do to me.

Now they would all laugh at me. I was supposed to be their fearless leader, supposed to be tough and independent, supposed to be able to fight off _one stupid little human._

In the moment it took for Fang to tell the flock what was going on, the man took this opportunity to do what he did to his victims, do what he had done to _me, _and shoved _something, _up his nose while clamping his mouth shut.

Fang struggled a little, but stopped.

And then Fang fell to the ground, quite pale and motionless, a red trickle oozing out of his nose.

And that's when I cracked.

The shell that I had built over myself, that had both shielded and had cut me off from the rest of the world for the past few weeks shattered into a million pieces and scattered into the air.

For the first time in what seemed like forever, I saw the world in a different light.

Instead of the dark, cold world I had grown accustomed to, I saw a newly lit place, full of prospect and possibility.

Instead of being a trapped weak, pitiful bird, struggling to survive, struggling to cope and to live, I was...

I was…free.

And I had a burning hatred for the pathetic man who stood in front of me.

The burning feeling spread into my limbs and all I wanted to do was make that man, that _monster _feel how I had felt.

"Why did you do that?" I asked calmly, surprising myself.

The man just laughed, which irked me, "Why?" he mocked, "Because it _amuses _me."

Damn him.

How could he just dismiss the physical and sexual abuse as if it was a thing that everyone did.

How could he have absolutely no regrets about all the things he had said and done?

That was it. That was the final straw. I was done. Done putting up with all his crap.

I lunged at him.

And then I killed him.

Okay, I didn't _really _kill him, but I kicked him _really _hard and stuff, so take that!

I punched his head once. "I," Twice. "Hate," Three times. "You!"

And with that, he fell to the ground and I wiped the blood off of my knuckles onto my jeans.

Amazingly, he was still conscious, though barely.

I took this as an opportunity to tell him how I felt.

"What is it about you that makes you think you could do this? I mean, at what point in your life did someone take you aside and teach you what to do-how to get away with it, what to say?"

He just groaned in pain and spat out blood, splattering the dirt.

"Are you ill-equipped or what? Are your bloody balls so small that you need to prove yourself at every freaking turn?"

I was belittling my monster. Chopping him down. Making him pathetic.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Iggy gasp at my language and desperately try to cover the Gasman, Nudge and Angel's ears all at the same time; I just ignored it and went on.

I lifted my head, and screamed obscenities towards the sky. Screamed until I was hoarse and could scream no more. I screamed out loud that I hated him. I hated him more than I'd ever hated anyone. I hated him for touching me. I hated him for lying to me. I hated him so much I wished he would die. I screamed until my whole body ached.

I felt pain, I felt anger, I felt hate – but most of all – I felt me.

No longer numb, I reclaimed my body.

"So, you were – raped?" asked Iggy hesitantly.

I opened my mouth to speak, but nothing would come out so I just nodded.

"Come here."

They all put their arms around me – and for once I didn't flinch. I didn't need to say another word for them to understand.

They knew the truth. That _rape _word boxed me, categorized me, and stored me on the shelf with thousands of other women just like me.

I didn't want to be part of that group. I couldn't accept it. I never wanted to accept it.

After a moment wrapped in the warmth of my family, my flock, I remembered the missing piece.

"Fang!"

I shoved everyone aside and knelt down beside his body.

"Fang, are you okay?"

His eyes fluttered open, and a groan emitted from his mouth.

"Max?" he said and sat up on one elbow, "Are you okay? Did he hurt you again? Did he hurt the flock?"

"No," I said, my heart brimming with happiness. "But I hurt _you. _I shouldn't have pushed you away."

And with that, I kissed him on the lips.

A thousand electric waves pulsed through us, linking us as one.

And I was surer that we belonged together than ever.

I put a hand in his soft hair and deepened the kiss.

Gasps and a few "what the hells" (from Iggy, of course) sounded in the background, but they were muffled to my ears.

Finally, I pulled back and looked into Fang's dark eyes.

Usually black and emotionless, they held an unusual spark to them.

"I love you," I breathed.

"I love you too."

***

"Move it."

My harsh voice stung the air, slicing through the chattering around me.

"Please," he begged. "Don't turn me in, I'll do anything."

I rolled my eyes. "Whatever."

_"You don't understand!"_

"Yes we do," said Nudge, butting in. "We understand what you did to Max, and that you need to be punished!"

The rest of the flock nodded in agreement.

"But _he _did it to me too!" he whined earnestly. "Every day _he _would come into my room and even my own _mother _didn't believe me! She loved him too much to even _consider _that he would do something like that! She just thought that I was trying to get back at her for dumping my dad and remarrying!"

Pity clouded my mind, but was quickly replaced by anger. "So that's what it came to, huh? An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth!"

He shrugged and fell silent.

We got up to the police station and went inside.

A cop passed us, a coffee in his hand and a moustache on his mouth that looked as though the end of a mop had been glued onto his upper lip.

"Excuse me," I said, stepping into the police officer's way.

"What kid?" He said, annoyed, "I'm kinda busy."

I raised an eyebrow. "I just thought you would like to take this guy," I shoved _him _forward, "In for questioning."

"Why?"

"For the," I paused, trying to remember the big word I had heard on the news, "Statutory rape of at least two or more people. He was on the news yesterday, remember? Brown hair, thin?"

"Hmmm," the cop scratched his chin, "That _does _seem to ring a bell." He turned to the trembling, _feeble_ man standing next to me, taking in his bloodshot eyes, distinct hangover and grubby appearance. "Please come with me sir.

He gulped, but he had no choice, just like I had had no choice when _he _was in control.

But the tables had turned, circumstances had changed and now _I _was the one in control.

As we exited the police station, Fang took my hand in his, smiling reassuringly at me.

I was about to pull my hand away, but stopped myself and returned a shaky smile.

It still made me so uncomfortable to be touched. I wondered if I would ever be able to be touched by someone without thinking about it, without feeling that I wanted to run away.

As for _that man, _I kind of saw him differently now. I didn't see him as a monster. I saw him as pathetic. A full-grown man who had preyed on a young girl for sex.

What did that say about him? What sort of person was he? A man with no self-confidence to make it with girls of his age? A man who cared about his own self-gratification at the expense of anyone else? He was not a good human being – he was an opportunist who looked out for number one. He would have to know what he did was wrong.

I hope the idea that he would pay for his actions haunted him.

I hope it haunts him every day like he haunts me.

* * *

**Dear reader,**

**Firstly, I'm sorry that it took so long to update.**

**_Expect nothing and you will not be disappointed._**

**Thank you to everyone who read this story, added it to alert and favorite lists, reviewed it and stayed with it the whole way.**

**1 out of 4 women and 1 out of 6 men are sexually assaulted at some point in their life. 70% of assailants have used drugs or alcohol prior to the assault. **

**Therefore, this story is dedicated to those people; the survivors and the victims who live with the haunting memory for the rest of their lives.**

**Fly on,**

**Necrophobia :)**


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